Literati

The first time I went to Literati Bookstore was in November with some of my friends. It was a Saturday evening and we had decided to explore downtown Ann Arbor, but started to regret it when the cold temperature almost became unbearable. We started to walk back towards State Street, abandoning our exploration for a warmer day, when we saw literati on the corner of Washington street. It was busy- people were coming in and out and though the windows we saw the small space crowded with people. In a different situation the crowd would have kept my out, but we were all so intrigued (and freezing) by the little book store that we had to go in.
The sea of people surrounded the small islands of books. We made our way to the “Holiday Favorites,” but couldn’t stay long as it was a popular spot for early holiday shoppers.
We walked along the perimeter, the walls lined with shelves filled with books and illuminated from spotlights above. Handwritten index cards were placed beneath some displayed books. The cards were handwritten and had personal reviews from the employees who wanted to share their favorite reads from that month.
We headed to the basement, passing by the window display featuring a tree made of stacked books and decorated with twinkly lights. The basement was less crowded, but still tightly packed. Sections of books lining the walls were distinguished by chalkboard signs. The “Travel,” section lured me to the corner of the room in the far right. I sat on a stool, overwhelmed by the selection. My friends were making the rounds, stopping every once and a while to pick up something that seemed interesting or read an employee recommendation.
I finally tore myself away from the travel section to meet my friends at a type writer by the stairs. It was placed on an antique table with an invitation sit down and leave a message. It had already been used several times that night- the paper was almost full. My only experience with type writers has been in antique shops that were always displayed with a harsh “Do Not Touch,” sign. So, we seized the opportunity to leave a message to commemorate our inaugural visit to Literati.
We left the warm and cozy atmosphere of the bookstore and returned to the harsh bitterness of a November night in Michigan. We cross the street and looked back to the corner store, the crowd still visible through the window but silent from a distance. With the glow of the store behind us, we walked back to campus, already planning a return trip.